A heat gun is a device which generates a flow of hot air for use in a variety of applications. A heat gun comprises a tubular body in which is located a fan. Air is drawn in at one end of the body by the operation of the fan and is blown out of the other end through a nozzle, after having passed over a heating element also located within the body which heats up the air as it passes over/or through the heating element.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,668,370 and 4,135,080 disclose heat guns.
The hot air is typically expelled from the body through a metal nozzle. The problem with such a design is that the nozzle can become extremely hot. Therefore, when an operator has finished using the heat gun, the heat gun cannot be simply placed on its side on a work surface as the heat from the nozzle can damage the work surface, at least until the nozzle has cooled. Therefore, the heat gun has to be either placed on a surface which is capable of withstanding the heat or on a surface where there is no concern if it becomes damaged.
Even if it is acceptable for damage to the surface to occur, the operator must ensure that the damage caused to the surface does not have an impact on the heat gun. For example, if the surface were made of plastic, it would not desirable for the plastic to become melted onto the nozzle.
Alternatively, it can be arranged for the heat gun to be placed on a surface in such a manner that the nozzle is located away from the work surface. One way of achieving this is to balance the heat gun on the work surface, assuming the shape of the heat gun provides suitable support for it to be balanced in such a manner. However, this provides either a heat gun which is unstable which can easily be knocked over or a heat gun which has a non-desirable shape. Furthermore, the instability is increased if the surface is not flat or is at an angle.
US Publication No. 2003/0235462 provides a heat gun having a support mechanism which improves the stability of the heat gun when placed on a work surface. However, the support mechanism is located on the base of the heat gun. This restricts the use of the base in providing air vents for the provision of air to operate the heat gun. Furthermore, the use of slidable wings results in a weak construction, and the wings are liable to break during use. Furthermore, the wings need to slide in grooves which tend to clog up during the use of such a heat gun.